Early-stage healthcare venture capital and private equity fund, iGan Partners, is looking for innovative healthtech startups to pitch live at its second Pitch to Heal competition.
iGan Partners is looking for early-stage startups developing technologies that tackle cancer, mental health, or diabetes.
iGan Partners will select three emerging healthtech companies with groundbreaking technology to pitch at the event. The firm conducted a survey of over 10,000 Canadians to determine what healthcare issues trouble them the most, finding that Ontarians are most concerned about cancer, mental health, and diabetes. iGan is, therefore, looking for startups that directly address these various diseases.
The entries will be narrowed to three companies, who will then will pitch to a panel of judges made up of CEOs from iGan Partners’ healthcare portfolio. The winner will receive a $250,000 seed investment. The pitch competition will be followed by iGan Partners’ yearly October Tekfest celebration, which looks to highlight Toronto’s innoavtive ecosystem.
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iGan Partners invests in entrepreneurs to commercialize and scale healthcare innovations. The pitch event will be held on November 7 at the Four Seasons Hotel in Toronto and is invite-only, but any early-stage startups working in health technologies are free to apply.
In April, iGan announced the second close of its Fund I, securing an additional $50 million to invest in healthtech companies. iGan was originally founded in 2010. The firm’s portfolio includes Toronto-based eSight, which has developed sight-enhancing glasses for the visually impaired, as well as Finaeo, while not specifically a healthtech company, recently raised $5.35 million CAD for its insurance software.
Healthtech, particularly digital health, has seen a boost in venture investment this year. According to CB Insights and PwC Canada’s latest MoneyTree report, digital health boomed in this year’s second quarter, with a particular focus on the virtual care scene, as startups announced new virtual care offerings, partnerships, and funding rounds in droves this past spring.
Interested companies can apply here.